12. 1969 Hurst Oldsmobile 442 Convertible
One of the most successful collaborations between a major car company and a small aftermarket outfit was the deal between Hurst and Oldsmobile. At the time, Oldsmobile was under the GM ban, which forbade the company from putting engines larger than 400 CID in their intermediate cars. However, since Hurst was an independent company, the GM rules didn’t apply. So, Oldsmobile shipped some partially disassembled 442s to Hurst where they installed the biggest engine Oldsmobile had, which was the mighty 455 V8 that delivered 390 HP.
Of course, the Hurst Olds package also got numerous other performance upgrades, like a ram air induction system, heavy-duty suspension and brakes. Since the Hurst Olds was a limited production factory hot rod, it was quite expensive and the convertible wasn’t available. But, in 1969, Hurst did produce three convertibles for promotional purposes only.